Fruit and vegetable slicer.



T. McG. AIKEN. FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SLICER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-21.1915.

Patented Oct. 12

WITNES Qa I NVENTOR THOMAS MoGr. AIKEN, 0F, PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SLICER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 1 2, 1915.

Application filed January 27, 1915. Serial No. 4,648

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS MoG. AIKEN,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburgh, in the county of Alleghenyand State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fruit and Vegetable Slicers, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple and eflicient tool for slicing vegetables and fruits, the tool being of such construction that when held in flat engagement with the surface to be cut the resulting slice is necessarily of uniform thickness.

A further object is to provide for adjusting the cutter for slices of different thickness without impairing the uniformity of the slice whether it be relatively thick or thin.

v The invention is embodied in a tool-like body portion or head having a bottom guiding surface which is adapted to bear on the article to be out together with a blade-like cutter adjustable relatively to said surface but always maintained parallel therewith, so that so long as the guiding surface is maintained in proper engagement with the article a slice of uniform thickness will be produced. And it is in-this particular that the invention distinguishes from those hand-manipu lated slicing tools heretofore proposed wherein uniformity in the thickness of the slice depends entirely, upon the skill of the operator, the tool being provided with no automatic gaging means for compelling uniformity. V 7

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in top plan of a tool embodying the invention, and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on line 22 of Fig.1. Fig. 3 is a bottom plan. Fig. 4 is a cross-section of the tool taken on line 44 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a viewin top plan of a tool of modified form, and Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section on line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, the tool body is of open-top shell-like form, being preferably shaped or pressed from sheet-metaland consists of a transversely elongated headlike portion A having its bottom formed with the guiding or gaging surface B, the head at each end of said surface provided with the upstanding end portions or wings C. The edges of these wings are inclined upwardly and forwardly from the marginal portion 6 of guiding surface B, and are formed with the straight parallel bead-like grooves D which adjustably confine the cutter support, as will be presently described.

At the opposite side of the gage surface B from marginal portion 6 the metal of the head 'or body is inclined upwardly and forwardly and curled to form the hollow handle extension E. {In the adaptation shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, handle portion E comprises a socket for the removable curved paring and coring blade F, the handle G of which provides a convenient handle for the slicing tool. The inset lips or fianges H in handle portion E overhang the edges of blade F, the latter wedging therebeneath and firmly held in the socket with'theblade point 'F confined'in the lower extremity of the socketlike handle formation of the body. In the adaptation shown in Figs. 5 and 6 the contracted and curled handle portion J is extended to form an integral handle of full length, the extremity of which may be shaped-to form the peeler and corer K. In this formation the curled sides of the handle are preferably flattened, as indicated at J, to provide for conveniently and securely gripping the same.

The guiding or gaging surface Bis preferably flat, and the blade-like cutter L is also flat, with its cutting edgel disposed toward marginal portion 6 of surface B. Blade-L is maintained in a plane constantly parallel with the plane of surface B, the distance separating said planes determining the thickness of the slice. For thus adjustably supporting the cutter, the extremities thereof are securedto the upwardly and forwardlyinolined parallel armsM which are slidable in guide. grooves D of the upstand-v ing head-ends C. Arms M preferably are extensions of the transverse bar N, all beingbent up from a piece of wire of suitable gage with the arm terminals secured in sockets L at the ends of blade L and with the extremities of said terminals turned up-. wardlyfs'lightly at M tov prevent the ter'-. minalsffrom, pulling out the socket. With arms N slidable in parallel guides D the parallelism of the blade and surface B is maintained whether the blade be set for 'pro-. ducing a relatively thick or thin slice.

In the adaptation shown in Figs. 1 to 4, a clamping device 0 is hinged to turn on bar N of the blade, and when the clamp is turned to holding position its hook-like extremities P are adapted to flex over the heads which form grooves D and thereby lock the cutter reason of its engagement with the article being out. If no clamp is employed, as in the construction shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the cutter support must be adjustable in a plane more nearly at right angles to surface B,

1 pelling the angle being necessarily sufficient to prevent-the pull on the cutter from dragging the support downwardly in its guideways. In this last described construction the tool is necessarily thicker, wider or less flat in its dimension extending from top to bottom than in the construction employing a clamp.

- In operation, after adjusting the cutter for the desired thickness of slicethe tool is grasped by its handle and drawn over'the potato, apple or other article with surface B held in flat engagement therewith. The operation is thus accurately gaged, the parallelism of the blade and surface B coma slice of uniform thickness from end to end. This effect is further facilitated by beveling the upper side of cutting edge Z, as shown.

I claim:

1.v A household tool comprising a handle, a guiding device and a blade-like cutter carried by the handle, the guiding device having a straight bearing surface extending in the direction of movement of the tool and the blade-like cutter having its width dimension extending in the same direction with its cutting edge disposed transversely to said direction of movement, the cutter and guiding. device being spaced apart in the direction of said movement and with the straight guiding surface and transverse dimension of the cutter lying in parallel planes, and: means for varying the distance between said planes.

7, 2. A'household tool comprising a body having its under side straight inthe direction of movement of the body to form a guiding surface, a handle projecting from the body, a cutter spaced from the bodyin the direction of movement of the tool with the cutter straight in said direction and lying'in a plane parallel with the guiding surface of the body, and a cutter support secured to the body and adjustable thereon ina straight line oblique to the planes of said-guiding surface and cutter for varying theLdistance between the planes of said parts without disturbing their parallelism.

3. A household tool comprising a body having its under side formed with a flat guiding surface and with a handle portion inclined upwardly and rearwardly from said surface, a flat cutter at one side of the guiding surface and in a plane beneath and parallel therewith, and a cutter support carried by the body and movable thereon in a right line for maintaining the flat guiding surface and flat cutter parallel in all positions of adjustment.

4:. A household tool comprising a body having its under side formed with a flat guiding surface and with a handle elevated above said surface, a flat cutter parallel a 5. A household tool comprising a body havingits under side formed with a flat. guiding surface, a handle projecting from the body at one side of the guiding surface and a flat cutter at the opposite side of and in a plane parallel with the flat guiding sur-.

face, a cutter support movable on the body for varying the distance between the parallel planes of the guiding surface and cutter, the support being movable in a direction to maintain such parallelism in all positions of the cutter. I

6. A household tool comprising a body having a transversely disposed head-like portion formed on its under side with a flat guiding surface and with an upwardly disposed handle portion at one side of said surface, a flatbla'de-like cutter lying in a plane parallel with the guiding surface and located at the opposite side of the latter from the handle, a cutter support adjustable on the body for maintaining the cutter parallel with the guiding face in all positions of adsurface and contracted to provide a handle portion, a fiat blade-like cutter disposed in a plane lower than and parallel with the guiding surface and located at the opposite side of said surface from said handle portion, and a cutter carrier, the upstanding ends of the head-like portion shaped to adjustably retain the carrier whereby the setting of the flat cutter may be varied relatively to the flat guiding surface and main- I tained always parallel therewith.

' 8. A household tool comprising an upwardly open shell-like body, the body being widened transversely to form a head-like portion, the under side of the latter formed with a fiat guiding face and said head portion having upstanding ends formed with inclined parallel edges and each edge formed with a straight guideway, the body at one side of its flat guiding face being upwardly disposed to form a handle portion, a bladelike cutter at the side of the flat guiding face of the head opposite the handle portion and disposed in a plane lower than and parallel with said guiding surface, and arms projecting upwardly from opposite ends of the cutter and slidably held in said guideways. 7

9. A household tool comprising a body having its under side formed with a flat guiding surface, a handle for the body at one side of the guiding face, the body having upstanding end portions formed with straight guideways, a blade-like cutter at the side of the guiding surface opposite the handle and disposed in a plane lower than and parallel with said surface, a support for the cutter movable in the guideways, and clamping means for securing the support in any position to which the cutter may be adjusted.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

THOMAS MoG. AIKEN.

Witnesses:

W. M. MOMILLIN, L. D. STEPHENS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

